Bowdoin Polar Bears
Logo
UniversityBowdoin College
ConferenceNew England Small College Athletic Conference (primary)
NEISA (sailing)
EISA (nordic skiing)
NCAADivision III
Athletic directorTim Ryan
LocationBrunswick, Maine
Varsity teams30
Football stadiumWhittier Field[1]
Basketball arenaMorrell Gymnasium
Ice hockey arenaSidney J. Watson Arena
Baseball stadiumPickard Field
Other venuesLeighton Sailing Center
Brunswick Golf Course
Howard F. Ryan Field
LeRoy Greason Pool
William Farley Field House
MascotPolar Bear
NicknamePolar Bears
ColorsBlack and white[2]
   
Websiteathletics.bowdoin.edu

The Bowdoin Polar Bears are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Bowdoin College, located in Brunswick, Maine. The Polar Bears compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC). Bowdoin College currently fields teams in fourteen men's sports and sixteen women's sports. The polar bear team name was selected to honor Robert Peary of the class of 1877 who lead the first expedition that reached the North Pole.[3]

All Bowdoin Polar Bears sports teams compete in NCAA Division III, and 25 of 30 teams compete in the NESCAC. Bowdoin College was one of the eleven charter members who joined together to form the new New England Small College Athletic Conference in 1971.

Most Bowdoin Polar Bears teams have on-campus facilities, and most are located on the south side of campus, including Sidney J. Watson Arena for ice hockey; Howard F. Ryan Field for field hockey and lacrosse; Pickard Field for baseball, soccer, softball, and rugby; Lubin Family Squash Center for squash; LeRoy Greason Pool for swimming and diving; and Farley Field House for indoor track and field. Whittier Field is located on the east side of campus. Morrell Gymnasium is located at the center of campus. Brunswick Golf Course, Leighton Sailing Center, and Pineland Nordic Skiing Center are all located away from the main campus.

Tim Ryan has been the athletic director since 2013.[4]

The Athletic Department also supports three club sports: rowing, rugby, and ultimate Frisbee.

Sports sponsored

Men's sports Women's sports
Baseball
Basketball Basketball
Cross countryCross country
Field hockey
Football
GolfGolf
Ice hockeyIce hockey
LacrosseLacrosse
Nordic skiingNordic skiing
Rowing (Club) Rowing (Club)
Rugby (Club)Rugby
SailingSailing
SoccerSoccer
Softball
SquashSquash
Swimming & divingSwimming & diving
TennisTennis
Track & field†Track & field†
Volleyball
† – Track and field includes both indoor and outdoor.

The Bowdoin College Athletic Department sponsors teams in 14 men's and 16 women's NCAA sanctioned sports.

Baseball

Bowdoin College first fielded a varsity baseball time in 1867. Seven Bowdoin College alumnus have played in Major League Baseball. Since 1966, four players have been selected in the Major League Baseball draft.[5]

The Polar Bears have advanced to two NCAA tournaments in 2006 and 2012.[6]

The Polar Bears baseball team plays its home games at Pickard Baseball Diamond.[7] Mike Connolly is the current head coach of the Bowdoin Polar Bears baseball.

Women's basketball

The women's basketball team at Bowdoin College has won nine NESCAC championships, including seven in a row from 2001 to 2007. The Polar Bears have historically been competitive in the NCAA tournament.[8]

Field hockey

The field hockey team at Bowdoin College has won 11 conference championships (8 since competing in the NESCAC) and 4 national championships.[9]

Football

Bowdoin College fielded an official varsity football team for the first time in 1899, losing to Tufts 8–4 in its first game. Bowdoin football achieved its first win in the following game in a 42–0 win over the Boston Latin School.[10]

The Polar Bears' most prominent current football rivals are in-state NESCAC foes Bates and Colby. Bowdoin has historically shared rivalries with Maine, too, but those games are no longer played annually and have lessened in intensity. Since 1965, Bowdoin, Bates, and Colby compete annually in the Colby-Bates-Bowdoin Championship to be the best NESCAC school in Maine; Bowdoin has won the CBB championship 20 times, the most of all three schools. Prior to the CBB Championship, the three schools competed with Maine for the State Championship. Bowdoin won the State Championship nine times. The State Championship seasons were: 1935, 1936, 1937, 1940, 1942, 1949, 1952, 1960 and 1963..[11]

The Polar Bears football team plays its home games at Whittier Field, the team's home field since the program began.[12] B.J. Hammer is the current head coach of the Bowdoin Polar Bears football.

Athletic facilities

FacilityTenantCapacityConstructed
Brunswick Golf CourseMen's Golf, Women's GolfN/A1888
Sidney J. Watson ArenaMen's Ice hockey, Women's Ice hockey1,9002009
Howard F. Ryan FieldField Hockey, Women's LacrosseN/A2001
Leighton Sailing CenterSailingN/A2014
LeRoy Greason PoolMen's Swimming & diving, Women's Swimming & diving350N/A
Lubin Family Squash CenterMen's Squash, Women's SquashN/AN/A
Magee-Samuelson Track Men's Outdoor Track & field, Women's Outdoor Track & field, 9,000 1970
Morrell GymnasiumMen's Basketball, Women's Basketball, Volleyball1,5001965
Pickard Baseball Diamond Baseball N/A N/A
Pickard Cross Country Course Men's Cross country, Women's Cross country N/A N/A
Pickard Men's Soccer Field Men's Soccer 2,000 N/A
Pickard Rugby Field Men's Rugby (Club), Women's Rugby N/A N/A
Pickard Softball Field Softball N/A N/A
Pickard Tennis Courts Men's Tennis, Women's Tennis N/A N/A
Pickard Women's Soccer Field Women's Soccer N/A N/A
Pineland Nordic Skiing CenterMen's Nordic Skiing, Women's Nordic SkiingN/AN/A
Smith BoathouseMen's Rowing (Club), Women's Rowing (Club)N/A2002
William Farley Field House Men's Indoor Track & field, Women's Indoor Track & field, 1,000 N/A
Whittier FieldFootball, Men's Lacrosse9,0001896

Championships

NCAA team championships

Bowdoin has won 5 NCAA team titles.[13]

  • Men's (1)
    • Tennis (1): 2016
  • Women's (4)
    • Field Hockey (4): 2007, 2008, 2010, 2013

Other national team championships

Below are 3 national team titles that were not bestowed by the NCAA:

  • Men's (3)
  • Women's (3)
    • Rugby (3): 2016, 2019, 2021 (NIRA)
  1. ↑ Bowdoin College has been named the de facto Division II champions 3 times prior to the NCAA sponsoring a Division II tournament

Conference championships

Bowdoin has won 46 conference titles.[14] The men's ice hockey team competed in the ECAC until 1999 when the NESCAC teams formed their own conference tournament.[15]

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 ECAC
  2. 1 2 Maine Association of Intercollegiate Athletics for Women

Rivalries

The college's biggest rival is Colby College. Bates College is another big in-state conference rival. Historically, the University of Maine was a football rival during the Maine State Series era. Currently, Bowdoin, Bates, and Colby have competed for the CBB Championship since the 1960s.[16] The college's rowing club competes in the Colby-Bates-Bowdoin Chase Regatta annually.

Bates

Bates and Bowdoin have been traditional rivals in football since they first met in 1889. As of 2021, Bowdoin and Bates have competed in 123 football games, making it the 10th longest NCAA Division III rivalry. The Polar Bears lead the Bobcats 67-49-7 all-time.[17]

Colby

The Bowdoin–Colby football rivalry is the third oldest in Division III.[18]

Additionally, the Bowdoin men's hockey team has a historic rivalry with Colby. The inaugural ice hockey match between the two schools occurred in 1922.[19]

Notable athletes

Polar Bears in the Olympic Games

Bowdoin College has a long history of athletes who have competed in the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games. Bowdoin has produced three gold medalists.[20]

The list of notable Polar Bear Olympians and Paralympians includes Fred Tootell, Geoffrey Mason, Bernard Lucas, Joan Benoit Samuelson, Jake Adicoff, and Emilie Grand'Pierre.

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Bowdoin College - Official Athletics Website".
  2. ↑ "Color and Typography". Retrieved December 7, 2018.
  3. ↑ Kay, Sela (November 1, 2019). "The Bowdoin polar bear: origins in a history of exploration". The Bowdoin Orient. Retrieved October 18, 2021.
  4. ↑ "Tim Ryan - Ashmead White Director of Athletics - Staff Directory". Bowdoin College. Retrieved March 31, 2022.
  5. ↑ "Bowdoin College (Brunswick, ME) Baseball Players". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved March 31, 2022.
  6. ↑ "Bowdoin College Baseball History" (PDF). Bowdoin College. Retrieved March 31, 2022.
  7. ↑ "Pickard Baseball Diamond". Bowdoin College. Retrieved March 31, 2022.
  8. ↑ "Bowdoin College Women's Basketball History" (PDF). Bowdoin College. Retrieved March 31, 2022.
  9. ↑ "Bowdoin College Field Hockey History" (PDF). Bowdoin College. Retrieved March 31, 2022.
  10. ↑ "Bowdoin College Football - All Time Scores" (PDF). Bowdoin College. Retrieved March 31, 2022.
  11. ↑ "Bowdoin College Football History" (PDF). Bowdoin Athletics. Retrieved October 18, 2021.
  12. ↑ "Whittier Field". Bowdoin College. Retrieved March 31, 2022.
  13. ↑ "Summary–(NCAA) All Divisions/Collegiate Total Championships" (PDF). Retrieved October 18, 2021.
  14. ↑ "Past NESCAC Champions". New England Small College Athletic Conference. Retrieved October 18, 2021.
  15. 1 2 "Bowdoin College Men's Ice Hockey History" (PDF). Bowdoin Athletics. Retrieved October 18, 2021.
  16. ↑ Emerson, Anthony (November 11, 2009). "Colby, Bates, and Bowdoin: Plenty of History Behind These Football Rivals". Bleacher Report. Retrieved October 18, 2021.
  17. ↑ "Bowdoin Football Battles Bates in Final Home Game of Season Saturday". Bowdoin College. Retrieved April 17, 2022.
  18. ↑ Clara Jergins (November 11, 2021). "Football hopes to bounce back after loss to Bates". The Bowdoin Orient. Retrieved April 16, 2022.
  19. ↑ Klein, Jeff Z. (30 November 2012). "Want a Real Rivalry? Try Bowdoin-Colby". Slap Shot. Retrieved October 19, 2021.
  20. ↑ "Bowdoin Athletics - Olympians & Paralympians". Bowdoin College. Retrieved March 31, 2022.
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